-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- With a star-studded client list that includes Catherine Zeta-Jones , Lindsay Lohan , Julia Roberts and Michelle Pfeiffer , Trelise Cooper is an internationally known fashion designer .

Starting out with a boutique store in Auckland , New Zealand , during the mid-1980s , Cooper 's ascent onto the fashion stage -- and the front covers of Vogue and Marie Claire -- is made more remarkable by the fact that she never received any formal training as either a designer or seamstress .

Instead , Cooper relied on her self-confessed `` obsession '' for detail , as well as a natural eye for fashion . `` I was born a fashion designer '' she says , and soon after she set up shop , her clothes acquired a reputation for their bold use of pattern and intricate stitching .

Cooper took up the `` Fusion Journey '' challenge to travel from New Zealand to New Delhi , India 's capital . Although it 's a city she had been to on business many times before , she says that she 'd never allowed herself the time to study its traditional dress in earnest .

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There she was tasked with creating a new fashion line that would combine her own sophisticated modern style with the vibrant , brightly colored traditions of Indian dress-making .

In her own words , Cooper retraces the footsteps of her Fusion Journey .

Trelise Cooper : I absolutely adore the historical aspect of clothing . My ranges are full of influences from 19th-century French , English , even American vintage styles . So it 's no surprise I have always enjoyed combing through flea markets in small towns and finding rare antique gems to steal some inspiration .

I 'm also obsessed with detail , so when I find a Victorian gown or a 50s bridal slip that I like , then it 's important for me to be able to emulate the exact stitching , embroidery or beading used at the time . In the West , unfortunately , most of our expert hand-stitching traditions have been lost -- the skills have not been passed on and the seamstress geniuses from the couture houses of Europe have not been replaced .

That is why I 'm often traveling to India . It 's one of the very best places in the world to find that expertise still thriving . From one village to the next you find whole families , generations , that have their own specialties of stitch work .

Honestly , I can give them any old historical piece that I 've found and they will either take it away and recreate it almost perfectly , or they 'll say `` hmmm ... I do n't know this stitching , but I know a place nearby that does . '' It 's a fashion designer 's dream !

So in one sense , I 've been fusing my clothes with Indian influences for a while . However , I think this was the first time I 've traveled to India with a conscious intention to create a fusion of styles : their own traditional dress with my more modern , western creations .

I just love the color and the vibrancy that is India . New Delhi is exciting and chaotic and noisy and dusty and smoky and hot . Everything is so full of intense color and I realized that , on a subconscious level at least , I 've been influenced by Indian style ... In fact , when it comes to bold use of colors and the use of these rich , deep dyes , how can anyone deny the huge influence of India on fashion around the world ?

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Walking through the streets , you see color combinations that you 'd never imagine would work . I recall a beautiful woman wearing a sari in bright , radiant pink mixed with a lime green print . I mean , lime and pink ! It sounds garish , but on her , with the quality of the dye and the way the colors had been combined it looked absolutely stunning .

We made our way to a shop that I can only describe as a treasure trove of fabrics and other goodies . This was the place to find all the accessories , textiles , ribbons , bows , buttons , and beads that I could take back to my studio in Auckland to use as inspiration for the final creations .

There were ideas there , old and new , that I 'd never thought about . Already I could envisage opportunities to use all sorts of different laces and braids , detailed examples of hand stitching , with some other antique dresses we 'd picked up from a local supplier .

Much as I love them personally , I do n't sell things like saris -- and I never would -- it 's not a style that would appeal to the tastes of my particular customers . However , what I took back to New Zealand , was their techniques , their intense celebratory colors , their detailed embellishments , their expert use of beads and sequins .

I worked on the new line for many months , and these are the elements I hope I managed to incorporate into them . I think they 've added an opulence , a romance . But I 'll only know I have finished the creative process when someone comes in and says that , no matter what , they have to have it .

The garment takes them on a journey , and so my journey with the garment has finished .

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New Zealand fashion designer Trelise Cooper flew to New Delhi seeking new styles

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Cooper was drawn to the city 's tradition of flamboyantly colored clothes

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She says that the journey helped her create a line of clothing fused with opulence and romance